Attachment Theory
by Jen Kollic
Summary: A series of small vignettes taking place between chapters of 'Phlogiston Theory', an AU where Flame Princess is adopted by Princess Bubblegum instead of being returned to her father. Reading the main fic is highly recommended as this won't make much sense without it.


**Disclaimer:** Adventure Time belongs to Pendleton Ward/Cartoon Network. Thanks to Rinney for proof reading, and also for suggesting the title!

**A/N:** This will basically be a collection of short scenes that didn't make it into 'Phlogiston Theory', usually because I hadn't thought of them at the time and there's only so many flashbacks I can cram in there without severely disrupting the flow. Or they just didn't fit. These may not necessarily be in chronological order, but I will note what chapters they take place in or between. And if there's any particular scenarios or situations you'd like to see, let me know! But mostly this is going to be cute. Ugh.

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**Power - Takes place between chapters 4 and 5**

Colourful molten sugar spattered across both the large tile and the floor of the testing chamber as Flame Princess slammed sticky, caramel-coated hands across the white ceramic surface. The little elemental giggled as she looked at the multi-coloured handprints she had left, then grabbed a handful of dyed sugar crystals from the bucket Princess Bubblegum had given her, melting them in seconds and adding them to the mess.

"I guess you really don't need the palette any more," the candy princess commented from where she was sitting nearby, taking notes on how quickly the little fire girl was learning to control her powers. A small LCD screen was propped up in front of her, tracking Flame Princess' heat levels by means of a small, heatproof thermometer that Bubblegum had clipped into the little girl's hair. She'd been monitoring Flame Princess' combustion levels for several months now – although she was slowly learning not to burn things, she was still creating powerful heat blasts when she was frightened or excited. And despite all of Bubblegum's efforts, the blasts only seemed to grow stronger as the little girl grew.

Noting down another temperature reading, the candy princess quickly flicked through the notebook, then began to chart her recordings on a sheet of graph paper. "Well, it looks like it's a slow build," she commented, half to herself and half to the little fire girl who waved sticky hands and chortled in response. "Naturally your power's going to grow as you get older, isn't it?" Bubblegum idly began to mark projected future readings on the chart, mentally working through a complex algorithm that took into account the fire girl's growth, health and maturity. "As long as we can keep it under control…" A faint crease appeared on the pink woman's brow as the gentle curve grew steeper, quickly recalculating only to arrive at the same results. "…then it shouldn't be… oh good Grod!" She had just marked the point labelled '14'; now the curve had gone and instead she was looking at a near-perpendicular line.

"This has to level off sometime," Bubblegum hissed to herself, cold sweat starting to prickle across her neck as she looked at her graph – and what it represented. "After all, she should stop growing a few years after that…" To the candy princess' relief, the graph's line grew gentler again after '16', then upon reaching '18' it all but plateaued, going upwards at only a slight gradient. The candy princess didn't go any further, instead going back to look at that troubling point where the graph shot upwards. If Flame Princess' heat levels did rise like that in her early teens, it would be difficult for her to retain control, and if she lost control then the results could be disastrous. Not just for her, not just for the Candy Kingdom, but potentially for all of Ooo.

"You're a threat," Bubblegum murmured softly, staring down at the paper grimly. "Maybe it would be for the best if I…" Her words trailed off as she looked over at the little fire girl, who was happily slapping more coloured handprints across the tile, stopping now and then to clap and chuckle. Looking up, Flame Princess saw that Bubblegum was watching her and pushed herself to her feet, toddling over to the pink woman with her arms outstretched trustingly. It would be easy for the candy princess to deal with her here and now, there were plenty of ways the young elemental could be sealed up in order to do no harm. Indeed, shutting her up in a generator would even be beneficial.

But instead, as the little girl reached her Bubblegum threw her notes aside and caught Flame Princess in both arms. Lifting the little fire girl onto her lap, protected by her apron and gloves, Bubblegum couldn't help smiling as Flame Princess snuggled against her like a puppy, burbling contentedly. "Well, I've been wrong before," the candy princess told her, bopping the small elemental's nose gently with one finger. "Not for a long time of course, but still. It's early days yet, and with the right teaching you won't cause any harm. Just because you could be dangerous doesn't mean you will be after all. It's not like having special powers means you'll use them irresponsibly," she added, then pulled a wry expression. "Not like someone ELSE I used to know…"


End file.
